REGIONAL— The group behind a 2022 film viewed by hundreds of North Country residents and used as a campaign kick-off by GOP Rep. Roger Skraba, has admitted to a Georgia judge that it has no evidence to back up its claims of voter fraud.
The group, known as “True the Vote,” provided the basis for the now widely debunked film “2000 Mules,” which aired multiple times at the Historic State Theater in Ely at the behest of then-candidate Skraba. The film, produced by Dinesh D’Souza, a right-wing provacateur, alleged that thousands of “mules” stuffed drop-off ballot boxes in Georgia and several other swing states. The film relied heavily on publicly accessible security video in place around the ballot box drop-offs. The group claimed to have reviewed thousands of hours of such video and alleged that their investigation had uncovered a systematic attempt to use individuals to ferry fraudulent votes to these drop-off locations. Notably, the film, which showed dozens of individuals depositing their votes in the ballot boxes, was never able to show the same person doing so repeatedly, which would have lent credence to their claims. Nor was the group ever able to produce witnesses with knowledge of the supposed scheme.
Georgia’s State Election Board completed its own investigation and concluded that the individuals depicted in 2000 Mules were exercising their legal right to use the drop box to deposit their ballots, or the ballots of family members.
True the Vote, reportedly under pressure from funders to take their allegations to state elections official, filed a complaint with the Georgia State Elections Board in 2021 claiming to have “a detailed account of coordinated efforts to collect and deposit ballots in drop boxes across metro Atlanta” in the 2020 election.
The group, however, was slow to produce evidence in the case when Georgia elections officials attempted to investigate. Finally, in 2023, a Fulton County judge ordered the group to provide the evidence it claimed to have in its possession, including “the detailed account” the group claimed in its complaint. That included a request for any recordings, transcripts, testimony, statements, witness interviews, or notes that the group compiled in support of its claims. The judge’s order also sought the contact information “for several individuals” who True the Vote claimed had personal knowledge of the activities it alleged, as well as a “contracted team of researchers and investigators” that the group cited in its complaint.
Just recently, however, True the Vote responded through its attorneys in a seven-page court filing that acknowledged that on all points, the group had no information in its possession that supported the allegations in its complaint.
Is that causing any second thoughts by Rep. Skraba, who not only organized the showing but brought other right-wing candidates, including attorney general candidate Doug Wardlow and St. Louis County Sheriff candidate Chad Walsh, to the event to stir up the crowd? That’s not clear. The Timberjay emailed questions and left a voice mail message for Skraba at his legislative office, but Skraba did not respond as of press time.